


Getting the Timing Down

by stellarparallax



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Kissing, Light Angst, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-07-12 12:36:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15995363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stellarparallax/pseuds/stellarparallax
Summary: It was no secret that being the one closest to the blast made it so Keith’s recovery took the longest time and the most work, and he appreciated all the help that he could get.What definitely wasn’t helping was the fact that Pidge seemed to be everywhere. When he was in the training room helping Shiro and Iverson test out the new flight simulator, she was there helping to tweak the settings at the control panel. When he took Allura to one of the malls and showed her around, he spotted Pidge with her mother. When Shiro accompanied him to the rehab clinic, it just so happened that Pidge was also there with Matt.So imagine his surprise (or complete lack thereof) when he was over for dinner at Hunk’s with his mother and Pidge happened to be the one sitting on his left.





	Getting the Timing Down

**Author's Note:**

> For the lovely Naz (@formjawblade on tumblr)

Keith wiped away the dribble going down his chin with the back of his hand as he came to consciousness. The ward was still in its usual sterile state; no number of visitors could make it warmer than it was meant to be. Usually, he would have been able to count on his mother and Kolivan to be by his bedside. They were always willing to let him talk about whatever trivial thought ran through his foggy-with-morphine head. It was as if they were making up for lost time, all those years that he’d been on his own.

Keith moved his hand to adjust the incline of the hospital bed. A folded piece of paper fell out as he did that.

_Went to get lunch. Back soon. Love, Mum._

That explained a lot. It only took a glance at the clock for him to realise why Shiro wasn’t there either. He was probably stuck in some meeting with Iverson, discussing matters that Keith, quite frankly, couldn’t bring himself to care about. Especially when he was that tired, in that much pain, and so unbelievably parched.

Thirsty. That was why he was taking a mental roll call of everyone he expected to visit him.

There was always the option of calling for a nurse. But with how understaffed the infirmary was, he didn’t want to inconvenience anyone to attend to his minor discomfort. Especially not when he knew for a fact that many of the people who helped defend the Garrison were in critical condition. He could wait. His mother would probably be back in an hour anyway.

Unless she found the old year books from when he was attending classes there. Unless she started going through them, misty-eyed while looking at pictures of her son getting bigger each year. Unless she ran into someone who would tell her tales of his shenanigans. Someone like Iverson. Or worse, Shiro.

Suddenly, a burst of light appeared by his side. Kosmo.

“Hey, Kosmo.” He hadn’t expected his voice to come out _that_ hoarse. “Do you think you could fetch me a bottle of water?”

Kosmo nodded enthusiastically, which made Keith feel all warm inside. That is, until Kosmo returned with a branch.

“Bottle of water, Kosmo. Not branch. Fetch me a bottle of water, please.”

Burst of light. A larger stick.

Keith stared at Kosmo, who had dropped the branch onto Keith’s lap and was licking his hand. If anyone came into the room and took a photograph of Keith, it could be titled “frustration”. Back when he was stuck in a time loop with his mother, he had such a hard time teaching Kosmo how to fetch. Now that he needed him to do something else, it was all he wanted to do.

“Wa-ter… Wa-ter…”

Light.

“What the— oh, hi, Keith!”

Pidge?

Keith froze. Months ago, he realised that he may have a bit of a thing for Pidge, but there was never a right time to act on his feelings. That is, if there would _ever_ be a right time. His plan was to stew in his own feelings until she eventually ended up with someone else and leaving him alone, a pining mess for all of eternity. What he didn’t anticipate was having his cosmic wolf calling him out on it.

“Was there something you wanted? I was actually in the middle of a game with Lance.”

 _Was there something he wanted?_ Oh, like not being paralysed with nervous energy from even being close to her? Apart from being able to look right into her eyes and tell her that she’s the most amazing, fascinating and beautiful person he’d ever known? Apart from not waking up every day aching from the thought of never holding her in his arms?

Right, there was. Water. He could just tell her that he could really use some water. She would get him water, then leave. The awkward situation would be over. But that would just be too easy for his lizard brain—the same lizard brain that was starting to panic over Pidge coming closer to him while he was having a severe case of dragon breath.

“Wait, no, stay back. I… don’t want you to catch what I’m having!”

“Are you sick? Do you need me to call a nurse? Your face is turning red. Are you having a fever?”

_No… nonononono._

He glanced at Kosmo, who somehow understood him perfectly that time. He pounced onto Pidge, causing them both to disappear, probably to wherever he found her in the first place. Keith’s heart started to steady again as his adrenaline levels went back to normal.

In a few minutes, Kosmo was back with a full bottle of water between his teeth. Somehow, he managed to avoid puncturing the plastic but the exterior was still wet with his saliva. Not that Keith was complaining. Not after everything else that Kosmo had just put him through.

 

* * *

 

Recovery was proving to be difficult. Keith tried his best to get back into a consistent routine of a healthy diet and regular exercise, but it was hard when the thought of eating made him feel sick and his muscles were aching with every movement.

Still, he persisted, unwilling to let the aftermath of the fight get to him. He had a lot of help and support from his mother and, funnily enough, Lance. In fact, Lance had been almost too helpful what with sending Keith home cooked meals that his mother made and going on jogs with Keith. _Just in case you collapse and need someone to call for a doctor_ , he’d say.

It was no secret that being the one closest to the blast made it so Keith’s recovery took the longest time and the most work, and he appreciated all the help that he could get.

What definitely wasn’t helping was the fact that Pidge seemed to be everywhere. When he was in the training room helping Shiro and Iverson test out the new flight simulator, she was there helping to tweak the settings at the control panel. When he took Allura to one of the malls and showed her around, he spotted Pidge with her mother. When Shiro accompanied him to the rehab clinic, _it just so happened_ that Pidge was also there with Matt.

So imagine his surprise (or complete lack thereof) when he was over for dinner at Hunk’s with his mother and Pidge happened to be the one sitting on his left.

“Keith, could you pass the potatoes?” she asked.

“W-w-w-what? I don’t need any potatoes!”

“No, pass ME the potatoes.”

“Oh, right.” He picked up the dish. “Here you—”

It damn near slipped out of his hands. Luckily, his mother caught it, or he’d have been _really_ embarrassed. He could feel Hunk eyeing him.

“Keith, is… is the rehab going well?” Hunk asked.

“Yeah, I’m just—”

“Because if you’re dealing with something, you know you can always come to us, right? My Uncle Sammy had a car accident before. I know it’s not the same but—”

“Hunk, I’m fine. Please, just drop it.”

“No!”

This time it was a voice from Keith’s left.

“You’re so proud, you know? You deal with everything on your own and you never let anyone except your mother and Shiro in! Don’t you think we worry about you? Don’t you think we care?”

“Pidge, I swear, I’m f—”

“You put on this mask and you think we don’t see right through it, but you’re wrong. If rehab isn’t working out, I WANT to know. I WANT to be there for you.”

Keith just stared at her, shell-shocked as he watched tears pooling in her eyes. Pidge removed her glasses and wiped them away, smiling sadly.

“Why do you do this, Keith? Do you think it’ll make it harder for us to love you? So you never have to deal with us leaving? It’s too late, Keith. I already love you.”

The silence that ensued was punctuated by the sound of Pidge’s chair screeching against the floor as she stood up to leave the room. Suddenly, it wasn’t just Hunk that was looking at Keith.

Hunk’s lips formed a thin line and he nodded as he made a variety of expressions showing his discomfort.

“... Yeah,” he finally said.

 

* * *

 

“May I join you?”

Keith turned to find his mother climbing onto the roof of their desert shack, where he was. He gave her a non-committal shrug and returned to looking up at the stars. His eyes darted from one star to another, his mouth gaping slightly in awe. It’s what he used to do when his father was still around.

“I’ve missed a lot of your life,” his mother finally said. “I can’t believe that the one thing that I didn’t miss was your very first crush.”

“What?” Keith stiffened up, almost falling off the roof in the process.

“You like her! It’s so obvious!”

Keith glanced around as if he actually believed that anyone else would be around. “Does anyone else know?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t learnt how to read anyone else’s children yet. So, when are you going to tell her?”

“How about: I’m NOT going to tell her?”

“Why not? Are you going to write her a note?”

“No!”

“Ask her to go to prom with you?”

“Prom? I’m 21!”

Krolia laughed. She pulled Keith close to her and planted kisses in his hair. He was always too proud to admit that he liked it when she did that, but he was pretty sure that she could tell by the way he melted from her touch. “You know that I’ll love and support you no matter what, right?”

“I know.”

“Good. Because she’s downstairs in the car waiting for you. She thinks that you’re mad at her.”

“She what?”

“Keith, I love you, but if you don’t go down there and talk to her, I’ll push you off the roof myself.”

And that was all the motivation he needed because he honestly wouldn’t put it past her to do it for real.

He climbed down from the roof, paying special attention not to fall off unceremoniously and embarrass himself further. He even imagined, just for a second, how his father would react if he saw what was happening, if he were still alive.

Finally, his feet touched the ground and he was struck by how he could feel the heat from the earth through the thick soles of his boots. Of course, even that wasn’t to be compared to the heat he was feeling in his face and neck. It really was getting warm.

He spotted the car a few metres away from where he was. As he approached it, it was as if the ground was sinking beneath his feet, betraying him the same way his cheeks were. Even in the dark, he was sure that she’d be able to tell that he wasn’t himself.

The sounds from the engine stopped when Pidge turned off the ignition. She stepped out of the car, instantly flinching at the temperature change.

“Hi,” Pidge said.

Keith stiffly nodded in response.

“I… I just need you to shut up for five minutes and let me talk okay?” She paused to wait for Keith to nod again. “What I said at dinner the other day was way out of line. I… I know it’s hard for you to open up to people. I just thought that… well, I thought wrong. And… I apologise.”

“Pidge, I—”

“Five minutes,” she reminded him. “I guess I’ve looked up to you for so long that I started… I don’t know… expecting the best from you, maybe? And I mean, it’s not fair. You’re only human. And like—”

“Pidge.”

“WHAT?”

“I love you too.”

“Oh, thank— Wait, WHAT?”

Keith lowered his eyes as his feet shuffled from side to side. “You heard me.”

“But I need to be sure.”

“I’m not saying it again!”

“Yes, you are!” she said, accompanied by a light punch to his arm.

“No, I’m not!”

Then, like opposing waves crashing into each other, their lips pressed together firmly. It took them a second to get a rhythm they could agree with, what with the chaotic energy  that they both ran on. Maybe the timing wasn't perfect, but Keith wasn't convinced that it would ever be. But slowly, surely, definitely, they sunk into each other. After a while, they broke apart, surfacing as they gasped for air.

“I… I think we’re both sure now,” he whispered in the space between them.

“Three minutes. Shut up,” she said, before reaching up for another kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading till the end! I would really appreciate it if you left kudos and comments.
> 
> Come scream at me @stellar-parallax on tumblr!


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